Top 30 under 30: the 2015 class of new wealth management talent

Class of 2015

Wealth Manager has once again scoured the UK private client sector to identify the young rising stars who are making their mark.

Now in its fifth year, Top 30 Under 30 is attracting more interest than ever and we received a record 200 entries.
The quality has been exceptional and it has been a difficult job whittling the list down to 30. The individuals chosen have studied hard to pass their exams and are making a real difference to their firms.

The final list is based on a combination of professional qualifications (which range from CFA to chartered wealth manager status), academic prowess and most importantly, the scope of the responsibilities they hold at their companies.

The latter includes being members of their firm’s investment committees, personally running client books and other decision-making roles they have day-to-day.

For a bit of colour and context, we also asked our entrants to detail their best investment call and where they are putting their clients’ money now.

Overall, what became clear when compiling the list was that the industry is more committed than ever to developing new talent, and wealth management looks to be in safe hands for generations to come.

Here we reveal this year’s Top 30 in alphabetical order.

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Adam Greaves, Brooks Macdonald International

Responsibilities

Fund selection and portfolio management

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager, chartered accountant

Career to date

Greaves joined Brooks Macdonald International in July 2013 after spending five years at Ernst & Young where he qualified as a chartered accountant, specialising in financial services. He started running money in February 2014 and is responsible for managing £45 million across discretionary private client and institutional portfolios.

Best investment call

Being overweight healthcare and technology in 2014.

Top fund pick

JO Hambro Continental European Hdg

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Alexander George, Dart Capital

Responsibilities

Research analyst and investment committee member

Industry qualifications

CFA charterholder

Career to date

George completed an internship at Brewin Dolphin’s Brighton office before joining Towers Watson’s hedge fund research team. He joined Dart Capital in March 2011, where he has responsibilities for fund manager research and asset allocation.

Top fund pick

Franklin UK Smaller Companies

Best advice received

‘Make sure you always look through short-term market noise and focus on fundamentals.’

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Andrew Gilbert, Parmenion Capital Partners

Responsibilities

Research, fund selection and investment Management

Industry qualifications

CFA level 1 and 2, CISI level 3

Career to date

Gilbert started out as a senior administrator at Capita Life & Pensions from 2006 to 2008 while studying economics at the University of York. On graduating, he worked as an investment assistant at Rathbone Greenbank before joining Parmenion in November 2010. He was subsequently promoted to investment analyst then investment manager, and now runs £200 million of private client assets and is co-manager of a further £700 million.

Best investment call

A long-term overweight position in property.

Best advice received

Be aware of and manage your natural behavioural biases - for example, always looking for evidence that you may be wrong, rather than just the research that reinforces your current views.

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Andrew Triggs, Cumberland Place Financial Management

Responsibilities

Research, fund selection and portfolio management

Industry qualifications

CFA charterholder

Career to date

Following a one-year internship in Citigroup’s New York-based private banking team, Triggs returned to the UK to take up an investment analyst role at Cumberland Place Financial Management in 2010. He has co-responsibility for around £200 million of discretionary assets and £70 million advisory, and in recent months has increasingly taken on client-facing responsibilities.

Best investment call

Building hedged Japanese equity exposure over the past 18.

Best advice received

‘When you are ready to move to cash you are often six months too early.’

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Tristan de Gabiole, Tier One Capital

Responsibilities

Research analyst and investment management

Industry qualifications

IMC level 4

Career to date

After initially studying in Switzerland, de Gabiole started out in investment research and quantitative risk analysis at fund of hedge funds firm Fundana. Keen to further his studies, he went back to university to complete an Msc in finance & investment in Durham, before joining Tier One Capital in February 2013.

Best investment call

Buying a 3x leveraged ETP when oil fell below $50bbl.

Best advice received

‘Experience is only useful so much as the past is like the future.’

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Ben Gilbert, Tilney Bestinvest

Responsibilities

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager

Career to date

Gilbert joined Bestinvest after university in 2010. Starting out on the new business team, he then moved to the advisory desk. He has gone on to build his own book and runs bespoke portfolios for around 250 high net worth clients with around £135 million in assets. He also works closely with the research team, and sits on a number of investment committees.

Best investment call

Buying Biotech Growth IT just before the biotech boom

Top fund pick

Liontrust Special Situations

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Ben Kumar, 7IM

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry Qualifications

CFA level 1 and 2, CISI level 3

Career to date

Kumar did work experience at 7IM on its investment management team in autumn 2010 and was offered the job of research analyst at the start of 2011. He then took on dual responsibility for the multi-manager funds in late 2013, working alongside 7IM’s chief investment strategist Ros Price.

Best investment call

Switching the Asia Pacific index used to one with a lower Australia weighting in mid-2014. This subsequently outperformed by 10%.

Top fund pick

Goldman Sachs India Equity

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Charles May, Tilney Bestinvest

Responsibilities

Research and investment advice

Industry Qualifications

PCIMA, CISI Diploma level 6

Career to date

May joined Tilney Bestinvest’s graduate trainee scheme in 2010 and after two years was managing a team of five. The team grew to eight the following year. He now has a client book of 200 high net worth individuals with assets totalling £50 million, and is responsible for venture capital trust manager selection.

Top fund pick

MEFM Slater Growth

Best advice received

‘Be patient, and spread your risk.’

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Cranley Macfarlane, JM Finn

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager

Career to date

Macfarlane joined JM Finn initially as a desk assistant. After passing the Investment Advice Diploma, he became an investment adviser before being promoted to assistant investment manager. Macfarlane is part of a team that runs £180 million across 250 accounts and has responsibility for monitoring fixed income fund selection.

Best investment call

Increasing Indian equity exposure through holding First State Asia Pacific

Best advice received

‘Don’t be afraid to try different careers.’

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Dan Boardman-Weston, BRI Wealth Management

Responsibilities

Portfolio management, research and asset allocation

Industry qualifications

CISI level 3

Career to date

Boardman-Weston started running money in August 2011 in a junior capacity alongside the chief investment officer at the height of the eurozone crisis. His time is predominantly split between portfolio management and direct equity and collectives research. Working with the CIO, he plays an integral role in the firm’s overall investment strategy.

Best investment call

Buying Quindell at 5.5p, selling at 38p less than 12 months later.

Top fund pick

Miton UK Smaller Companies

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Edward Park, Brooks Macdonald Asset Management

Responsibilities

Research, fund selection and portfolio management

Industry qualifications

CFA charterholder

Career to date

Park was recruited by BMAM in January 2009 as a trainee investment manager, qualifying as an investment manager in 2011. In April 2013, he joined the investment and asset allocation committees. He now runs £95 million for 65 private clients and oversees BMAM’s centralised investment process.

Best investment call

Buying US high yield and financial credit in early 2012.

Best advice received

‘Overall, keep things simple.’

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Geraldine Napier, Vestra Wealth

Responsibilities

Portfolio management

Industry qualifications

CFA charterholder

Career to date

Napier started her career on the Merrill Lynch Wealth Management graduate scheme. She went on to join Merrill Lynch Portfolio Managers where she ran portfolios for private clients, charities and trusts, and sat on its portfolio construction team. She continued in the same role after Merrill Lynch’s wealth management business was acquired by Julius Baer before joining Vestra Wealth in January.

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Graham Austin, Kleinwort Benson

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager

Career to date

Austin joined Kleinwort Benson in September 2010 after spending three years at Deutsche Bank where he completed their graduate programme. At Kleinwort he has worked across the wealth management and private banking teams, include stints in fund research, portfolio management and in the Middle East private banking team. Two years later, he was approached to join the discretionary team and became discretionary manager in 2014. He now manages over £100 million of client assets on behalf of around 300 clients.

Top investment picks

Scottish Mortgage investment trust and GVO UK Focus

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Harry Catchpole, HSBC Private Bank

Responsibilities

Private client research manager

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager

Career to date

After a spell as Indian paper The Hindu’s cricket correspondent, Catchpole joined HSBC’s UK graduate scheme in 2009. He initially worked in HSBC's alternative investments (HAIL) business as part of the hedge fund due diligence team. He then moved to the UK high net worth team, where he now runs £103 million for a growing book of over 30 clients. Catchpole has also been developing the links between the private bank in St James's Street and the global banking and markets business in Canary Wharf.

Best investment call

Buying the US dollar over the last 12 months.

Best advice received

‘Listen more than you talk.’

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Ian Woolley, Hawksmoor Investment Management

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry qualifications

CFA charterholder

Career to date

Aged 19, Woolley set up his own business, Travellingbug, which arranged gap-year placements overseas. He then spent two years working as a business consultant in Australia, before launching an IT outsourcing business in the Philippines. After a year working as an analyst for a family office, he joined Hawksmoor in 2013. His research focuses on UK equities, but he has also built bespoke software that is used throughout the firm for portfolio monitoring and management.

Best investment call

Buying Greggs at 450p, which has risen to 1,166p.

If you hadn’t gone into investment management, what career would you have pursued

Concert pianist

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James Hawkes, Cumberland Place Financial Management

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry qualifications

IMC level 4, CFA levels 1 and 2

Career to date

Hawkes started his career as a trader at OSTC before cutting his teeth in investment management at Kreston Reeves before it sold off its discretionary arm. After this, he moved to Cumberland Place Financial Management as an investment analyst, where he is now involved with all aspects of portfolio management. He is currently studying for his CFA level 3.

Best advice received

‘You miss 100% of the shots you don't take.’ (Wayne Gretzky)

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Jon Gould, Psigma Investment Management

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry qualifications

CFA charterholder

Career to date

Gould was an intern in AXA Framlington’s private client department as part of his degree and after graduating joined the company as a junior fund manager. From 2010 he started running client money and moved across to PSigma Investment Management after it acquired AXA Framlington’s private client arm in 2013. He is a member of the UK equity and UK AIM equity committees as well as the overarching investment committee, and he manages £60 million for around 150 clients.

Best advice received

‘The idiot in the room is not the one that asks the questions, it is the one that asks nothing and leaves the room more confused as a result.’

Best investment call

Buying Ashtead at 120p (which is now 1,197p)

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Jonathan Moyes, Whitechurch Securities

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager

Career to date

After completing a masters in finance at the University of Exeter in 2010, Moyes joined Brewin Dolphin’s graduate training scheme. He joined Whitechurch Securities as an investment analyst the following year and was promoted to investment manager in 2013.

Best investment call

Adopting a value bias across developed equity markets early in 2013.

Top fund pick

Natixis H2O MultiReturns

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Mark Richmond-Watson, James Hambro & Partners

Responsibilities

Portfolio management and member of the investment and asset allocation committees.

Industry Qualifications

Chartered wealth manager, PCIAM

Career to date

After graduating in business management from the University of Leeds, Richmond-Watson worked as a researcher at HR firm Human Capital for two years. He joined joining James Hambro & Partners in 2011 and after becoming a chartered wealth manager, now runs more than £10 million of client money.

Top fund pick

BlackRock Continental European Income

Best advice received

‘Try not to overcomplicate things.’

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Matthew Dickens, Ingenious Asset Management

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry qualifications

IMC level 4, CFA levels 1 and 2

Career to date

Dickens joined Ingenious in August 2011 in the newly created research team. In 2012, he was given responsibility for fixed income fund selection and became an investment manager in the platform model portfolio team. In early 2013, he took on the remit for alternatives selection. A year later he started running bespoke portfolios and was later promoted to senior analyst. He has allocated around £500 million to the funds he has selected.

Best advice received

‘Never be afraid to admit your mistakes.’

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Matthew Hull, Tamac

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry qualifications

IMC level 4, CFA level 1

Career to date

Hull started his career in financial services at 18 as a trainee financial adviser. After completing bachelors and masters degrees, alongside several internships, he joined Tamac as an analyst in 2012. He also co-founded a successful wedding dress design business with his wife.

Top three investments picks

LVMH, db x-trackers Harvest CSI300 ETF, Pershing Square

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Matthew Tyrie, Tilney Bestinvest

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager, PCIAM, IAD level 4

Career to date

Tyrie joined the then Bestinvest from university five years ago. He passed the Investment Advice Diploma in six months and moved to the firm’s investment guidance team. He now holds joint responsibility for UK equity research and personally manages around £250 million for 80 clients.

Best investment call

Recommending clients maintain high US equity exposure.

Top fund pick

Invesco Perpetual Global Targeted Absolute Return

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Matthew Yeates, 7IM

Yeates started his career at Brewin Dolphin three years ago, after a summer internship in the firm’s quantitative research team. For almost two years, he worked on the firm's model portfolio service team. In January 2014, he joined 7IM’s investment risk team, contributing to quantitative investment process and discretionary portfolio construction.

What has been your best investment call to date?

Buying Tesco at the bottom for my personal account.

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Nick Richardson, Charles Stanley

Responsibilities

Private client investment manager

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager

Career to date

Richardson started at TD Waterhouse (now TD Direct), working in the dealing room. He then moved to WH Ireland in early 2012 and began advising clients after completing the CISI's Private Client Investment Advice and Management (PCIAM) qualification. He subsequently joined Charles Stanley in August 2013, where he runs £25 million of private client money.

Best investment call

Buying Shire at 4,000p after the failed Abbvie approach - it is now at 5,484p

Best advice received

‘Always push the boundaries and challenge yourself to do better.’

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Nick Scarborough, Smith & Williamson

Responsibilities

Research and portfolio management

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager, ACA chartered accountant

Career to date

Scarborough joined the graduate trainee scheme in Smith & Williamson’s auditing division, going on to qualify as a chartered accountant. But ‘having seen enough purchase ledgers to suffice a lifetime’, he switched to investment management after passing his exams. He looks after a book of 400 clients that comprises high net worth individuals and trusts and is responsible for the team’s research on UK general retailers and Japanese equity collective investments.

Best investment call

Buying Yonex, which has risen by almost 200% over the last 12 months.

Top stock pick

Dixons Carphone

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Robert Ward, Walker Crips

Responsibilities

Portfolio and wealth management

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager

Career to date

Ward started out as a stockbroker at Edward Jones in 2006, before taking an investment manager role at Fyshe Horton Finney in 2009. He joined Walker Crips in 2013 and looks after 190 clients, with assets under management of £34 million.

Best investment call

Buying into technology stocks, including Apple

Best advice received

‘Manage expectations.’

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Sam Lansdowne, Thesis Asset Management

Responsibilities

Investment management

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager, IMC level 4

Career to date

Lansdowne graduated in civil engineering before completing a masters in finance, focusing on equity research and in particular, the European mobile telecommunications sector. He joined Thesis Asset Management in 2013 and assists with the management of around £180 million for 600 clients. He is now working towards building his own client relationships and portfolios.

Best investment call

Maintaining the hedge on his favoured European fund, JPM Europe Dynamic (ex UK).

Top stock pick

Moneysupermarket.com

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Scott Mordrick, Montage Portfolio Management

Responsibilities

Fund selection, research and asset allocation

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager, CFA level 1

Career to date

Mordrick started out at Dart Capital as an investment analyst, before joining Montage Portfolio Management in 2010. He helped Montage gain its discretionary permissions the following year and runs the firm’s suite of 11 risk-rated model portfolios. He has also recently taken on a number of clients and assisting on the business development side.

Best advice received

‘Treat people the way you would like to be treated.’

Top fund pick

JPM Europe Dynamic (ex-UK) GBP Hdg

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Tomas Owen-Jones, Sanlam Private Investments

Responsibilities

Research and portfolio management

Industry Qualifications

Chartered wealth manager, certified financial planner

Career to date

Owen-Jones joined Sanlam in 2006 where he trained as a financial adviser and achieved certified and chartered status. He chose to specialise in investment management and subsequently moved to Border Asset Management in 2012, which was acquired by Principal. The latter now comes under the Sanlam Private Wealth banner.

Best investment call

Adding significant US exposure two years ago.

Top stock pick

WPP

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Victoria Walker, Victoria Private Investment Office

Responsibilities

Research and asset allocation

Industry qualifications

IMC level 4, working towards chartered wealth manager status

Career to date

After graduating in mathematics from the University of Nottingham, Walker joined de Vere’s wealth management graduate trainee scheme in Malta. She moved to Victoria Private Investment Office in February 2014, joining as an investment analyst, and now personally looks after 15 high net worth clients. Walker has also initiated and hosts a series of regular networking events for industry professionals.

Best investment call

Buying Tesco shares in January ahead of their 30% rally.

Best advice received

‘Choose a company and mentor that will support and nurture you.’

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Class of 2015

Wealth Manager has once again scoured the UK private client sector to identify the young rising stars who are making their mark.

Now in its fifth year, Top 30 Under 30 is attracting more interest than ever and we received a record 200 entries.
The quality has been exceptional and it has been a difficult job whittling the list down to 30. The individuals chosen have studied hard to pass their exams and are making a real difference to their firms.

The final list is based on a combination of professional qualifications (which range from CFA to chartered wealth manager status), academic prowess and most importantly, the scope of the responsibilities they hold at their companies.

The latter includes being members of their firm’s investment committees, personally running client books and other decision-making roles they have day-to-day.

For a bit of colour and context, we also asked our entrants to detail their best investment call and where they are putting their clients’ money now.

Overall, what became clear when compiling the list was that the industry is more committed than ever to developing new talent, and wealth management looks to be in safe hands for generations to come.

Here we reveal this year’s Top 30 in alphabetical order.

Leave a comment!

Please sign in or register to comment. It is free to register and only takes a minute or two.

Class of 2015

Wealth Manager has once again scoured the UK private client sector to identify the young rising stars who are making their mark.

Now in its fifth year, Top 30 Under 30 is attracting more interest than ever and we received a record 200 entries.
The quality has been exceptional and it has been a difficult job whittling the list down to 30. The individuals chosen have studied hard to pass their exams and are making a real difference to their firms.

The final list is based on a combination of professional qualifications (which range from CFA to chartered wealth manager status), academic prowess and most importantly, the scope of the responsibilities they hold at their companies.

The latter includes being members of their firm’s investment committees, personally running client books and other decision-making roles they have day-to-day.

For a bit of colour and context, we also asked our entrants to detail their best investment call and where they are putting their clients’ money now.

Overall, what became clear when compiling the list was that the industry is more committed than ever to developing new talent, and wealth management looks to be in safe hands for generations to come.

Here we reveal this year’s Top 30 in alphabetical order.

Leave a comment!

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Adam Greaves, Brooks Macdonald International

Responsibilities

Fund selection and portfolio management

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager, chartered accountant

Career to date

Greaves joined Brooks Macdonald International in July 2013 after spending five years at Ernst & Young where he qualified as a chartered accountant, specialising in financial services. He started running money in February 2014 and is responsible for managing £45 million across discretionary private client and institutional portfolios.

Best investment call

Being overweight healthcare and technology in 2014.

Top fund pick

JO Hambro Continental European Hdg

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Alexander George, Dart Capital

Responsibilities

Research analyst and investment committee member

Industry qualifications

CFA charterholder

Career to date

George completed an internship at Brewin Dolphin’s Brighton office before joining Towers Watson’s hedge fund research team. He joined Dart Capital in March 2011, where he has responsibilities for fund manager research and asset allocation.

Top fund pick

Franklin UK Smaller Companies

Best advice received

‘Make sure you always look through short-term market noise and focus on fundamentals.’

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Andrew Gilbert, Parmenion Capital Partners

Responsibilities

Research, fund selection and investment Management

Industry qualifications

CFA level 1 and 2, CISI level 3

Career to date

Gilbert started out as a senior administrator at Capita Life & Pensions from 2006 to 2008 while studying economics at the University of York. On graduating, he worked as an investment assistant at Rathbone Greenbank before joining Parmenion in November 2010. He was subsequently promoted to investment analyst then investment manager, and now runs £200 million of private client assets and is co-manager of a further £700 million.

Best investment call

A long-term overweight position in property.

Best advice received

Be aware of and manage your natural behavioural biases - for example, always looking for evidence that you may be wrong, rather than just the research that reinforces your current views.

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Andrew Triggs, Cumberland Place Financial Management

Responsibilities

Research, fund selection and portfolio management

Industry qualifications

CFA charterholder

Career to date

Following a one-year internship in Citigroup’s New York-based private banking team, Triggs returned to the UK to take up an investment analyst role at Cumberland Place Financial Management in 2010. He has co-responsibility for around £200 million of discretionary assets and £70 million advisory, and in recent months has increasingly taken on client-facing responsibilities.

Best investment call

Building hedged Japanese equity exposure over the past 18.

Best advice received

‘When you are ready to move to cash you are often six months too early.’

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Tristan de Gabiole, Tier One Capital

Responsibilities

Research analyst and investment management

Industry qualifications

IMC level 4

Career to date

After initially studying in Switzerland, de Gabiole started out in investment research and quantitative risk analysis at fund of hedge funds firm Fundana. Keen to further his studies, he went back to university to complete an Msc in finance & investment in Durham, before joining Tier One Capital in February 2013.

Best investment call

Buying a 3x leveraged ETP when oil fell below $50bbl.

Best advice received

‘Experience is only useful so much as the past is like the future.’

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Ben Gilbert, Tilney Bestinvest

Responsibilities

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager

Career to date

Gilbert joined Bestinvest after university in 2010. Starting out on the new business team, he then moved to the advisory desk. He has gone on to build his own book and runs bespoke portfolios for around 250 high net worth clients with around £135 million in assets. He also works closely with the research team, and sits on a number of investment committees.

Best investment call

Buying Biotech Growth IT just before the biotech boom

Top fund pick

Liontrust Special Situations

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Ben Kumar, 7IM

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry Qualifications

CFA level 1 and 2, CISI level 3

Career to date

Kumar did work experience at 7IM on its investment management team in autumn 2010 and was offered the job of research analyst at the start of 2011. He then took on dual responsibility for the multi-manager funds in late 2013, working alongside 7IM’s chief investment strategist Ros Price.

Best investment call

Switching the Asia Pacific index used to one with a lower Australia weighting in mid-2014. This subsequently outperformed by 10%.

Top fund pick

Goldman Sachs India Equity

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Charles May, Tilney Bestinvest

Responsibilities

Research and investment advice

Industry Qualifications

PCIMA, CISI Diploma level 6

Career to date

May joined Tilney Bestinvest’s graduate trainee scheme in 2010 and after two years was managing a team of five. The team grew to eight the following year. He now has a client book of 200 high net worth individuals with assets totalling £50 million, and is responsible for venture capital trust manager selection.

Top fund pick

MEFM Slater Growth

Best advice received

‘Be patient, and spread your risk.’

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Cranley Macfarlane, JM Finn

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager

Career to date

Macfarlane joined JM Finn initially as a desk assistant. After passing the Investment Advice Diploma, he became an investment adviser before being promoted to assistant investment manager. Macfarlane is part of a team that runs £180 million across 250 accounts and has responsibility for monitoring fixed income fund selection.

Best investment call

Increasing Indian equity exposure through holding First State Asia Pacific

Best advice received

‘Don’t be afraid to try different careers.’

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Dan Boardman-Weston, BRI Wealth Management

Responsibilities

Portfolio management, research and asset allocation

Industry qualifications

CISI level 3

Career to date

Boardman-Weston started running money in August 2011 in a junior capacity alongside the chief investment officer at the height of the eurozone crisis. His time is predominantly split between portfolio management and direct equity and collectives research. Working with the CIO, he plays an integral role in the firm’s overall investment strategy.

Best investment call

Buying Quindell at 5.5p, selling at 38p less than 12 months later.

Top fund pick

Miton UK Smaller Companies

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Edward Park, Brooks Macdonald Asset Management

Responsibilities

Research, fund selection and portfolio management

Industry qualifications

CFA charterholder

Career to date

Park was recruited by BMAM in January 2009 as a trainee investment manager, qualifying as an investment manager in 2011. In April 2013, he joined the investment and asset allocation committees. He now runs £95 million for 65 private clients and oversees BMAM’s centralised investment process.

Best investment call

Buying US high yield and financial credit in early 2012.

Best advice received

‘Overall, keep things simple.’

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Geraldine Napier, Vestra Wealth

Responsibilities

Portfolio management

Industry qualifications

CFA charterholder

Career to date

Napier started her career on the Merrill Lynch Wealth Management graduate scheme. She went on to join Merrill Lynch Portfolio Managers where she ran portfolios for private clients, charities and trusts, and sat on its portfolio construction team. She continued in the same role after Merrill Lynch’s wealth management business was acquired by Julius Baer before joining Vestra Wealth in January.

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Graham Austin, Kleinwort Benson

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager

Career to date

Austin joined Kleinwort Benson in September 2010 after spending three years at Deutsche Bank where he completed their graduate programme. At Kleinwort he has worked across the wealth management and private banking teams, include stints in fund research, portfolio management and in the Middle East private banking team. Two years later, he was approached to join the discretionary team and became discretionary manager in 2014. He now manages over £100 million of client assets on behalf of around 300 clients.

Top investment picks

Scottish Mortgage investment trust and GVO UK Focus

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Harry Catchpole, HSBC Private Bank

Responsibilities

Private client research manager

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager

Career to date

After a spell as Indian paper The Hindu’s cricket correspondent, Catchpole joined HSBC’s UK graduate scheme in 2009. He initially worked in HSBC's alternative investments (HAIL) business as part of the hedge fund due diligence team. He then moved to the UK high net worth team, where he now runs £103 million for a growing book of over 30 clients. Catchpole has also been developing the links between the private bank in St James's Street and the global banking and markets business in Canary Wharf.

Best investment call

Buying the US dollar over the last 12 months.

Best advice received

‘Listen more than you talk.’

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Ian Woolley, Hawksmoor Investment Management

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry qualifications

CFA charterholder

Career to date

Aged 19, Woolley set up his own business, Travellingbug, which arranged gap-year placements overseas. He then spent two years working as a business consultant in Australia, before launching an IT outsourcing business in the Philippines. After a year working as an analyst for a family office, he joined Hawksmoor in 2013. His research focuses on UK equities, but he has also built bespoke software that is used throughout the firm for portfolio monitoring and management.

Best investment call

Buying Greggs at 450p, which has risen to 1,166p.

If you hadn’t gone into investment management, what career would you have pursued

Concert pianist

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James Hawkes, Cumberland Place Financial Management

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry qualifications

IMC level 4, CFA levels 1 and 2

Career to date

Hawkes started his career as a trader at OSTC before cutting his teeth in investment management at Kreston Reeves before it sold off its discretionary arm. After this, he moved to Cumberland Place Financial Management as an investment analyst, where he is now involved with all aspects of portfolio management. He is currently studying for his CFA level 3.

Best advice received

‘You miss 100% of the shots you don't take.’ (Wayne Gretzky)

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Jon Gould, Psigma Investment Management

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry qualifications

CFA charterholder

Career to date

Gould was an intern in AXA Framlington’s private client department as part of his degree and after graduating joined the company as a junior fund manager. From 2010 he started running client money and moved across to PSigma Investment Management after it acquired AXA Framlington’s private client arm in 2013. He is a member of the UK equity and UK AIM equity committees as well as the overarching investment committee, and he manages £60 million for around 150 clients.

Best advice received

‘The idiot in the room is not the one that asks the questions, it is the one that asks nothing and leaves the room more confused as a result.’

Best investment call

Buying Ashtead at 120p (which is now 1,197p)

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Jonathan Moyes, Whitechurch Securities

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager

Career to date

After completing a masters in finance at the University of Exeter in 2010, Moyes joined Brewin Dolphin’s graduate training scheme. He joined Whitechurch Securities as an investment analyst the following year and was promoted to investment manager in 2013.

Best investment call

Adopting a value bias across developed equity markets early in 2013.

Top fund pick

Natixis H2O MultiReturns

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Mark Richmond-Watson, James Hambro & Partners

Responsibilities

Portfolio management and member of the investment and asset allocation committees.

Industry Qualifications

Chartered wealth manager, PCIAM

Career to date

After graduating in business management from the University of Leeds, Richmond-Watson worked as a researcher at HR firm Human Capital for two years. He joined joining James Hambro & Partners in 2011 and after becoming a chartered wealth manager, now runs more than £10 million of client money.

Top fund pick

BlackRock Continental European Income

Best advice received

‘Try not to overcomplicate things.’

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Matthew Dickens, Ingenious Asset Management

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry qualifications

IMC level 4, CFA levels 1 and 2

Career to date

Dickens joined Ingenious in August 2011 in the newly created research team. In 2012, he was given responsibility for fixed income fund selection and became an investment manager in the platform model portfolio team. In early 2013, he took on the remit for alternatives selection. A year later he started running bespoke portfolios and was later promoted to senior analyst. He has allocated around £500 million to the funds he has selected.

Best advice received

‘Never be afraid to admit your mistakes.’

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Matthew Hull, Tamac

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry qualifications

IMC level 4, CFA level 1

Career to date

Hull started his career in financial services at 18 as a trainee financial adviser. After completing bachelors and masters degrees, alongside several internships, he joined Tamac as an analyst in 2012. He also co-founded a successful wedding dress design business with his wife.

Top three investments picks

LVMH, db x-trackers Harvest CSI300 ETF, Pershing Square

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Matthew Tyrie, Tilney Bestinvest

Responsibilities

Research and investment management

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager, PCIAM, IAD level 4

Career to date

Tyrie joined the then Bestinvest from university five years ago. He passed the Investment Advice Diploma in six months and moved to the firm’s investment guidance team. He now holds joint responsibility for UK equity research and personally manages around £250 million for 80 clients.

Best investment call

Recommending clients maintain high US equity exposure.

Top fund pick

Invesco Perpetual Global Targeted Absolute Return

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Matthew Yeates, 7IM

Yeates started his career at Brewin Dolphin three years ago, after a summer internship in the firm’s quantitative research team. For almost two years, he worked on the firm's model portfolio service team. In January 2014, he joined 7IM’s investment risk team, contributing to quantitative investment process and discretionary portfolio construction.

What has been your best investment call to date?

Buying Tesco at the bottom for my personal account.

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Nick Richardson, Charles Stanley

Responsibilities

Private client investment manager

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager

Career to date

Richardson started at TD Waterhouse (now TD Direct), working in the dealing room. He then moved to WH Ireland in early 2012 and began advising clients after completing the CISI's Private Client Investment Advice and Management (PCIAM) qualification. He subsequently joined Charles Stanley in August 2013, where he runs £25 million of private client money.

Best investment call

Buying Shire at 4,000p after the failed Abbvie approach - it is now at 5,484p

Best advice received

‘Always push the boundaries and challenge yourself to do better.’

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Nick Scarborough, Smith & Williamson

Responsibilities

Research and portfolio management

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager, ACA chartered accountant

Career to date

Scarborough joined the graduate trainee scheme in Smith & Williamson’s auditing division, going on to qualify as a chartered accountant. But ‘having seen enough purchase ledgers to suffice a lifetime’, he switched to investment management after passing his exams. He looks after a book of 400 clients that comprises high net worth individuals and trusts and is responsible for the team’s research on UK general retailers and Japanese equity collective investments.

Best investment call

Buying Yonex, which has risen by almost 200% over the last 12 months.

Top stock pick

Dixons Carphone

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Robert Ward, Walker Crips

Responsibilities

Portfolio and wealth management

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager

Career to date

Ward started out as a stockbroker at Edward Jones in 2006, before taking an investment manager role at Fyshe Horton Finney in 2009. He joined Walker Crips in 2013 and looks after 190 clients, with assets under management of £34 million.

Best investment call

Buying into technology stocks, including Apple

Best advice received

‘Manage expectations.’

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Sam Lansdowne, Thesis Asset Management

Responsibilities

Investment management

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager, IMC level 4

Career to date

Lansdowne graduated in civil engineering before completing a masters in finance, focusing on equity research and in particular, the European mobile telecommunications sector. He joined Thesis Asset Management in 2013 and assists with the management of around £180 million for 600 clients. He is now working towards building his own client relationships and portfolios.

Best investment call

Maintaining the hedge on his favoured European fund, JPM Europe Dynamic (ex UK).

Top stock pick

Moneysupermarket.com

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Scott Mordrick, Montage Portfolio Management

Responsibilities

Fund selection, research and asset allocation

Industry qualifications

Chartered wealth manager, CFA level 1

Career to date

Mordrick started out at Dart Capital as an investment analyst, before joining Montage Portfolio Management in 2010. He helped Montage gain its discretionary permissions the following year and runs the firm’s suite of 11 risk-rated model portfolios. He has also recently taken on a number of clients and assisting on the business development side.

Best advice received

‘Treat people the way you would like to be treated.’

Top fund pick

JPM Europe Dynamic (ex-UK) GBP Hdg

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Tomas Owen-Jones, Sanlam Private Investments

Responsibilities

Research and portfolio management

Industry Qualifications

Chartered wealth manager, certified financial planner

Career to date

Owen-Jones joined Sanlam in 2006 where he trained as a financial adviser and achieved certified and chartered status. He chose to specialise in investment management and subsequently moved to Border Asset Management in 2012, which was acquired by Principal. The latter now comes under the Sanlam Private Wealth banner.

Best investment call

Adding significant US exposure two years ago.

Top stock pick

WPP

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Victoria Walker, Victoria Private Investment Office

Responsibilities

Research and asset allocation

Industry qualifications

IMC level 4, working towards chartered wealth manager status

Career to date

After graduating in mathematics from the University of Nottingham, Walker joined de Vere’s wealth management graduate trainee scheme in Malta. She moved to Victoria Private Investment Office in February 2014, joining as an investment analyst, and now personally looks after 15 high net worth clients. Walker has also initiated and hosts a series of regular networking events for industry professionals.

Best investment call

Buying Tesco shares in January ahead of their 30% rally.

Best advice received

‘Choose a company and mentor that will support and nurture you.’

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